The Opposition Lawmakers Coalition has expressed strong disapproval regarding the declaration of the seats of Edison Ehie, Chief of Staff to Governor Siminalayi Fubara, and three other lawmakers who support Fubara as vacant.
They characterized the request for the governor to present the 2024 budget as “dead on arrival.”
In a statement released on Wednesday, coalition spokesperson Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere asserted that there would be no representation of the Rivers State budget by Governor Fubara before the “sacked lawmakers,” whom he described as “unknown to the constitution.”
Ugochinyere contended that these lawmakers do not have the constitutional authority to declare the seats of Rivers lawmakers, particularly those led by Oko Jumbo, as vacant.
He also criticized the “illegal request” for budget representation concerning a budget that has already been implemented.
“When people ask me to react to the declaration of the lawmakers or the Rivers State House of Assembly’s sacked Pro-Wike lawmakers as vacant, I wonder why I must respond to every issue,” Ugochinyere remarked. “That action is the height of political stupidity. These are individuals whose seats the constitution has declared vacant—it’s automatic. You left the party on which you were elected because your godfather wanted you to switch sides, attempting to impeach Governor Fubara.”
He further added, “Now that you’re lost in the middle of the Atlantic, you want to return and claim you didn’t decamp? You made an affidavit, an oath that’s on record, and there was live coverage of your defection. Now, because you think Nigeria is a place where all sorts of iniquity can happen, you’re running from one court to another, trying to be declared a lawmaker when you’re not.”
Ugochinyere emphasized, “This issue has been resolved as far as I’m concerned. Oko Jumbo remains the speaker. Governor Fubara is not going to represent any budget; he has already implemented the budget. Implementation is currently at 80 percent, and he should come forward to share the achievements he has made. Why should he present a budget to individuals who are not lawmakers—especially to those whose seats have been declared vacant by the constitution? I’m tired of responding to the noise coming from them.”
